Bay Area firefighters develop game-changing wildfire technology

SONOMA COUNTY, Calif. – Since the to start with important firestorms of 2017, high engineering has been enhancing equipment for firefighters, who even now mostly work on the ground and frequently with minimal facts about how the in general battle is heading.

Two Bay Space firefighters have created an all round problem recognition application that other firefighters enjoy — and say really should unfold to other departments.

Irrespective of whether on an iPad or other pill, the Bay-Place-formulated “Pill Command” system is very little a lot less than a technological sport changer for firefighters, by firefighters.

Contra Costa County firefighters William Pidgeon, who is also a pc science specialist, and Andy Bozzo, a working firefighter, employed their genuine planet ordeals to arrive up with the Pill Command software program.

The computer software is now used by 265 fire departments throughout North The us, and its consumer selection is rising day by day.

“I was not geared up to develop a mission critical application. So we elevated some dollars with close friends and family members, established a organization and partnered with a software program development organization to establish the 1st edition of the software,” mentioned Pidgeon.

The app is all about the situational recognition of the full fireplace incident, featuring data out there to all incident commanders and 1st responders.

“The awesome thing about this, it’s on an iPad, which, for most departments, they can pay for to order,” mentioned Chief Costa.

Right before Tablet Command, laptop computer laptop or computer techniques that did fifty percent as a great deal have been, at the very least, two times the price tag. To this working day, any departments however have only paper notes, paper maps and a radio, with minimal entry to the major picture.

Two Sonoma County firefighters observed the application perform even though they have been on mutual help incidents, and they fought hard to provide it to the Bay Space.

“I was blown absent. I was like, ‘Wow, we truly will need to bring this to Sonoma County,’” explained Petaluma Fireplace Section Assistant Main Chad Costa.

“It is, by considerably, arms down, a person of the finest technology equipment I have at any time utilized,” included Sonoma Valley Fire Battalion Chief Spencer Andreis.

Pill Command incorporates any area’s hearth heritage, all roads statewide (like again streets and hearth streets), the location of every single piece of gear and 1000’s of cameras (which include remote utility cameras), regional hearth weather conditions and is infinitely expandable.

From the subject, firefighters can input data in actual time, dramatically rushing up and improving upon responses.

If there is any weak point to this procedure at all, it transpires in distant places the place you will find minor or no Wi-Fi. But, with commercial, web satellite Wi-Fi currently on the marketplace, that issue will probably be cleared up as nicely.